Family searches for answers

By Katie Cole (Contact) | Dadeville Record

Published Wednesday, November 4, 2009

A family man who loved NASCAR, animals and a good joke, Tony Harrelson’s life wasn’t too different from any other Dadeville resident’s.

Perhaps that’s why his death has been so shocking to his family, friends and community.

“Tony just loved everybody,” his wife Dinah Harrelson said. “It’s terrible not knowing what happened.”

Tony, a Royster Trucking driver and lifelong Dadeville resident, was shot and killed at the Camp Hill post office while on duty on the evening of Friday, Oct. 2. Details of his murder remain scarce as the U.S. Postal Inspection Service searches for his killer.

In addition to his wife, Tony left behind six children, nine grandchildren and his basset hounds. Spending time with his wife and all of his “babies” was his top priority when he wasn’t working.

“Our little time that we had we just wanted to be at home,” Dinah Harrelson said.

“Anytime that we had we were going places as a family and doing things with the family.”

James Williams, who met Tony in 1994 when they were both working for Williams Environmental in Stone Mountain, Ga., remembered him as a dependable friend who found humor everywhere.

“No matter how bad the situation, he would find a way to laugh about it,” Williams said.

Williams once needed help retrieving a camper trailer he’d bought in Tennessee. Tony offered to help transport the camper, but about an hour after they picked it up, Tony’s truck broke down. The two men hiked back to town and rented a U-Haul, and Williams never heard Tony complain about the trouble.

”That was just the type of person he was,” Williams said. “He’d give you the shirt off his back in the dead of winter and never ask for it back. He was just a great, all-around, giving guy.”

Randy Royster, owner of Royster Trucking, said Tony “was as good as they come,” and his death has shocked and frightened his employees.

“I’ve been in this business since 1973, and I’ve never known of anything like this happening,” Royster said. “The (drivers’) concern is at a great height right now.”

Although more than a month has passed since Tony’s murder, U.S. Postal Inspector Yulanda Burns remains confident they will find his killer. In the days following the murder, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service set up a command center in Opelika, and the United States Postal Service offered $100,000 in reward money for information about the crime.

“It is a rare incident,” Burns said. “We do solve them. It’s just a matter of when.”

The key is receiving tips from the public, even from individuals who are unsure if the information they know is helpful or just a rumor.

“We do depend and rely on the public heavily because they are the eyes and ears of the community,” Burns said.

The Harrelson family is also hoping that someone will come forward with information, so they can find the person responsible for his death and so they can know the rest of the family is safe.

“Our prayer would just be that if someone knows anything to please come forward,” Dinah Harrelson said. “Please help us find the person who did this.”

Several tip lines have been set up for people with information about the murder of Tony Harrelson: U.S. Postal Inspection Service hotline, 877-876-2455; Tallapoosa County Sheriff’s Department, 256-825-4264; or the Tallapoosa County Sheriff’s Department Secret Witness Number, 256-827-2035.

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